All about moving to, living in and doing business in Shanghai.

26 July 2005

Is living in Shanghai expensive?

A few weeks ago a friend of mine living in Shanghai went to Singapore for work and came back with two suitcases of new clothes and shoes. As soon as she got onto the phone with me, she started to rave about how cheap shopping is in Singapore and compared with Shanghai, Shanghai is super expensive! For instance, 4 people's decent breakfast in Singapore only cost 7 Singapore dollar; while in Shanghai similar composition would cost 200RMB; a skirt in Singapore is only about 50 Singapore dollar, while similar skirt in Shanghai is about 1000RMB.

I tried to find out the reason behind the high prices for some food and clothing in Shanghai. Firstly, my friend is actually one of those snobs who like western food and imported stuff more than local food and clothing. So we are talking about prices for western style food and imported clothing in China here.

Those western food restaurants or coffee shops are obviously all overpriced. For example, a normal coffee in Starbucks is about 25RMB; some normal ice cream in Haggen Daz is about 40RMB.

Western style food and drinks are always positioned for high market in China where people believe western style food is something rather luxurious than just common everyday food(like Chinese food) . This is like the discussion between chicken and eggs, who comes first no one knows. Is that because Chinese believe western style food should be more expensive somehow, so when they priced the food accordingly or is that because western food is priced high first so that Chinese people get used to it? I can't answer the question.

The thing is in Singapore, having coffee, orange juice and toast for
breakfast can't be more normal. There is no reason to charge a skyhigh
price for those everyday local food. While in China, a couple vegetable
buns won't cost you more than 2RMB because that is local Chinese food.

For imported clothing, I think one of the reasons is the same as food - overpriced. The other reason might have something to do with the tariff for imported textile items and luxurious items. As far as I remember, China always charge a higher rate of tariff for imported luxurious items. But how to define luxurious items in China is another thing. A normal pair of shoes in Singapore or Australia might be classified as luxurious item in China. Consequently those pretty clothing and shoes that my pretty friend likes are all unfortunately classified as luxurious goods, therefore, they are charged a higher rate of tariff.

Another side of the story about how expensive living in Shanghai is that another friend of mine living in Shanghai went to HongKong not long ago for a holiday. She only paid about 1200RMB for a guided tour which included return tickets from Shanghai, 5 days accommodation in 5 star hotel (normally 1000RMB a day for a twin share room in that hotel), 5 days guided tour in HK and 5 day's meals. I couldn't believe it - it is dirt cheap! She told me that the government is actually compensating the tourist operators in order to encourage tourists to travel and do shopping in HK.

As Shanghai is welcoming more westerners everyday, there will be more "westernly" priced goods and services appearing. No matter who you are, if you eat Chinese local food and shop for local goods, it will be always cheaper than maintaining a western style of life in China. I am sure about it!

Comments

Absurd. My best friend is from Singapore. He raved about the prices in Shanghai. Singapore is ridiculously expensive. Is is possible (though difficult) to live for RMB a month in Shanghai. In Singapore, you cannot do that for even 2500 RMB a month.

The argument between Singapore or Shanghai being the more expensive is really based on the individal doing the comparison and their income levels and the exchange rate between the areas being compared.

Sabrina's friend living in Shanghai does live a `high' life. So for her, things do cost a lot in Shanghai. Whilst she was in Singapore she did things differently and went to different types of shops and restaurants than she would have in Shanghai because she was staying with and being shown around by local Singaporeans. This means that she was comparing the high end of Shanghai with mid or low end of Singapore.

I have also been to Singapore, and I found that most things there are expensive when travelling as a western tourist or business man. However, a local customer of mine took me out to dinner as a local, and I was amazed at how cheap it was as a local. So Chinese Connections, your friend living in Singapore may be living the good life (expensive) in Singapore but in China went to all the local places (possibly with friends or acquaintances) - so it really does depend on the experience.

So the bottom line is really what is the individual comparing with to say if somewhere is cheap or expensive? Any place can be compared positively or negatively with another if you want to.

if you're searching for a cheap accomodation in shanghai you should go to the website : homestayglobal.com
they provide lot of accomodations at the best price and had a good reputation.
I'm a french student and I already tested it and it was very safe, honest and you will find the best price for rent in shanghai.

If you want to find a local rate for an apartment, i suggest going on local sites like ajuke and then google translating it. This way you can see local rates and non expat rates. :) When you meet an agent you like, they can show you apartments around the area. that's what I did :)